For my friend's birthday, I was invited to dinner at the Drake Hotel. When I arrived, the hostess was took our jackets and seated us in one of the booth areas. Although it was busy, the waiter took our orders quickly and efficiently (bonus: he was good looking!). The menu was pricier than I expected, so I opted out to the salad which was amazing. I really liked the ambiance - it had an artsy feel to it. We went to the concert venue which was just downstairs. Even though it was small, it was definitely cosy and warm. All in all, I had a fantastic time at the Drake. The only problem I had was the location - it was not central, so it was harder for me to find it in the shady area on Queen Street West.

We came here to the outdoor patio a couple of days ago for a meeting and some drinks. This is a great patio to sit and relax. It's a great location and very cute. However, the service we had was pretty bad. I don't know if he was just too busy or what but it took 1/2 an hour to get a bowl of roasted peanuts. The drinks on the other hand came reasonably quickly when he noticed we had been sitting there for a while. I'm assuming this was just a one off and that the service is normally better. The sky yard a few floors up is fantastic and I definitely recommend you check out either of these for a drink on a thursday or friday night.

Oh, and try the ladybug rose. I normally don't like rose at all but this one was soooo good!

The Drake is one of the coolest places in Toronto. The outdoor patio is great for the summer and there is an awesome club for staying out late!